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Hike Around Cecil Hollow in the Ponca Wilderness, Buffalo River

9/17/16

The Buffalo River runs through many areas of wonder. On this particular morning my destination was once more within the Ponca Wilderness near Kyles Landing. Part of it is just outside the wilderness. After my usual breakfast at Denny's in Russellville arrival was made at Kyles Landing where a short nap was enjoyed. Worry about fog hiding the terrain had me waiting till closer to sunrise. At 6:20 the river was crossed with a low water level. Rain the night before had raised it just a little here. By 7:00 my first bluff was mounted and a view of the valley with scattered fog was laid out before me. Some time was spent here while the sun slowly lit the mountains downstream and just around the corner. The wind was nonexistent and the temp was 68°.

Cecil Hollow was then followed around to the other side where it eventually ran back into the Buffalo. Here a series of bluffs were enjoyed while a herd of buzzards provided some movement above a mostly still valley. It was noted that the river had risen quite a lot from when my fording was made earlier. The next crossing could prove to be interesting. The bluff line was traced to the west until a ridge lowered be back into the depths of the valley. The river was waded with a goodly flow pushing at my knees. A beaver stick supported me like a third leg. I do not use trekking poles! I find these devices to be an abomination and the trend will only reverse our evolution from two legged creatures back to four. These are nothing but crutches and are just plain silly. My car was found safe and not washed away by the rising waters. It was near 12:00 and the temp was 77°. The hike was fairly rugged and totaled 3.5 miles.